The Atlas Factor: Shifting Leadership Onto the Shoulders of Jesus

Leaders often bear the weight of the church on their shoulders. But have we made leadership into something it was never meant to be? Most of us are familiar with Atlas, the mythological Greek figure condemned to hold up the heavens. If you have ever been a pastor, no doubt you have felt something similar. Being "the leader" often feels like an overwhelming burden. In an era plagued by the fall of influential pastors, it's time to reconsider our fundamental understanding and application of leadership. The Atlas Factor sheds light on the tragic mistake of replacing the God-ordained headship of Jesus with human-made systems and presents a way to realign the body of Christ with its true Head. Only when we shift leadership onto Jesus' shoulders can we become the beautiful, joyful, Spirit-filled expression of the church God intended us to be.

Review :
It is high time we rethink our emphasis on human leadership that has led to so much ministry failure and realign the church as a body under the headship of Christ. I pray we have the courage and humility to make the hard shifts that such realignment requires. Thanks to Lance Ford for issuing a challenge to us all. ANGIE WARD, PhD, director, Doctor of Ministry and associate professor, Leadership and Ministry, Denver Seminary; author, Uncharted Leadership: 20 Case Studies to Help Ministry Leaders Adapt to Uncertainty Lance doesn't just diagnose and deconstruct; he lays out a preferable future for us to consider, one where Jesus shoulders the burden. A must-read for our day. JR WOODWARD, movement leader, V3; author, The Scandal of Leadership: Unmasking the Powers of Domination in the Church A biblically informed, prophetic rebuke to a far too worldly-informed leadership construct within the church. You may not agree with all that Lance has written, but you will do well to humbly read and reconsider your own view on leadership. I personally can attest to how the "atlas factor" has brought great harm to me and sadly to others through me. In light of all that we see happening with abusive and toxic leadership today, this book is for such a time as this. JEFF VANDERSTELT, executive director, Saturate; author, Gospel Fluency, Saturate, and One Eighty: A Return to Disciple-Making Having witnessed the powerful move of God in the underground house churches in Iran, I have been concerned about the leadership business model of the American church, the loss of influence in our culture, and the epidemic of abuse. Lance provides practical ways the church can move toward health and better impact the world for the gospel. NAGHMEH ABEDINI PANAHI, author, I Didn't Survive: Emerging Whole After Deception, Persecution, and Hidden Abuse A necessary correction to the way that we conceive of, as well as implement, leadership in the church. ALAN HIRSCH, author of numerous books on missional leadership, organization, and spirituality This is the book for this very moment. I now want to learn how to fly, just so I can airdrop thousands of copies and scatter The Atlas Factor all over American churches. It's that good and that important. Yes, yes, yes, to all of this! Thank you, Lance Ford. BRANT HANSEN, radio host; author, Unoffendable, Blessed Are the Misfits, The Truth About Us, The Men We Need, and Life is Hard, God is Good, Let's Dance